>> hello and welcome to the "journal" here on dw. >> here's what's coming up in the next half hour. >> pakistan in turmoil as the supreme court orders the prime minister's rest -- are rest. >> france's mali mission. >> and has disgraced cyclist lance armstrong finally owned up to cheating?

we begin in pakistan where the supreme court has ordered the arrest of the prime minister and 16 others over corruption charges. >> this came after a mass protest in the capital added to pressure by the government. >> and aid to the government has accused the military of orchestrating the protests, and the order to arrest the prime minister. this political turmoil comes just months ahead of national elections. >> instead of millions, security officials say it is more like 25,000 protesters gathered in the parliaments in islamabad. there have been isolated clashes, and there was violence as demonstrators reached the heavily fortified area around the parliament building. gunshots were heard, but it was unclear if they were from protesters or police.

he is so far unknown in pakistani politics and is demanding the government step down immediately and that a caretaker government be set up to ensure that elections may reflect a truly democratic result. >> this is absolutely laughlin and democratic. we are here in front of the parliamentary house, parliament house, just to say -- save our country from collapse. and he blames the government for incompetence and corruption, and as if on cue, the country's supreme court has now ordered the arrest of the democratically elected prime minister on corruption charges. this is the government has been weak on countering terrorism. -- they say the government has been weak on countering terrorism.

>> we want to bring back our peace and security. >> he heads an international religious organization, and his supporters say he is promoting a liberal bent of islam, but critics say he is aligned with pakistan's military establishment. >> is that so? let's find out more. we speak to the head of the center for research and security studies in islamabad. is this a conspiracy against the prime minister, you think? >> i think what we saw today is the culmination of more than 4.5 years of war between the ruling pakistan people's's party and the judiciary and certain sections within the military establishment on the other hand. of course, the case against the

prime minister had been pending before the supreme court. by coincidence, today was the hearing. >> what does this all mean for constitutional politics? >> i think the opposition is all for using the constitution for the president's reform agenda. the claim that he is agitating or peddling against the common man who is reeling under inflation, unemployment, power outages, and this is but the government's at least in the dark for the time being, and i think more trouble is brewing now. >> thanks very much for this. >> living on to other news now, the united nations says the

nearly 150,000 people have escaped from mali, but almost 250,000 have been displaced in the country as a result of the conflict. france says it is sending more troops to the country to stem advances. >> so far, five days of aerial bombardment have failed to do that, and the rebel leader has promised revenge attacks against the french in mali and africa and europe. paris has told all french nationals to leave the southern town immediately. the embassy ordered the evacuation after rebels came to within 80 kilometers of the town. on the other side of the niger river, one town was seized by insurgents on monday. the fear is if they also manage to take strategically important cities, then the capital could be within their grasp. french forces began launching airstrikes last night on rebel positions to try to dislodge the insurgents.

the french president visiting troops in abu dhabi says the mission is going to plan. >> the air strikes hit their targets. some 750 soldiers are currently deployed. we will increase this number so we can hand over to african forces as soon as possible. >> the west african organization is planning to send some 3300 troops to mali as part of a u.n. mission. the french want this to happen soon. >> i have said that the african forces are going to get deployed in the coming days, the coming weeks. the head of the force, a nigerian general, actually is already there, and we are going through to some of our western partners, which are providing logistical support to bring african forces. >> germany has also offered transport aircraft.

the eu is sending military trainers, but time is of the essence if the west is to prevent it from falling into the hands of the radical jihad is. >> on to business news now, the german economy contracted in the final quarter of last year as the eurozone crisis took its toll, but europe's biggest economy still managed to post modest growth of 0.7%. >> that may not sound like much, but it is more than you expect from most eurozone economies. >> the eurozone crisis has not been able to dampen the mood among eurozone consumers. they are still hitting shops and helping the economy grow modestly. >> despite big increases in the cost of energy, raw materials, and oil, private consumption is up. that is the first reason. the second is that the german economy remained competitive last year despite a weaker

environment, and that has given exports a boost. >> exports are the backbone of the german economy. they continued to grow last year, albeit at a slower rate. companies are proceeding with caution. they are cutting investment amid uncertainty about what the new year will hold, especially for the eurozone. in 2011, the german economy grew by 3%. that figure dropped to 0.7% last year. the economy even contracted in the final quarter. the government is poised to cut its own forecast for 2013 to just 0.5%. that is unlikely to have an immediate impact on the jobs market. the unemployment rate is expected to see just a small rise this year. >> for, let's cross over to a frankfurt -- to frankfurt.

not necessarily the greatest news for those without a job, but there was good news for the german tax man. >> absolutely. the government has been able to reach its budget plans earlier than expected. the new debt load has been lower than expected, and this has been very good news, although the government also lowered its forecast for the economy, but here at the financial markets, people are more or less happy about the fact that the german economy will be able to avoid a recession. >> let's move on to corporate news then. record sales at s.a.p. we heard today. >> very good numbers. surprisingly good numbers coming from the sales side, but the profits went down because s.a.p. had to do some big investments, buying new technology, and

investors have been very disappointed. shares are down by more than 12% on the frankfurt floor, but also the market is down in general. the dax loses 1% at the moment. the euro stoxx 50 is down by 0.75%, waiting for wall street, opening up significantly lower, and the dollar -- the euro is also significantly down. and at air berlin is to cut 900 jobs in the next two years. that is one in 10 of its workers, but it has not said which jobs will be going. >> berlin has been making a loss for years, and the job cuts are part of a plan to save 400 million euros. berlin says it wants to focus on its most profitable routes in germany, switzerland, and austria. during the cold war, germany's bundesbank took a bet by soaring

gold reserves around the world and left in there after the collapse of communism. >> last year, official auditors point out that official stockpiles abroad have never actually been counted. >> plans are afoot to bring the bars back home, or at least some of them. >> at least he knows what he has in his hands -- his golden globe is nothing more than a thin layer of 24 karat gold covering up something much less precious, and there is no doubt about the quality of the gold in the bundesbanks either. experts inspect and count it every year. these do not have a chance. but this kind of checks are not possible every year. u.s. federal reserve's held somewhere in new york are not open to german gold inspectors. germany owns a total of about 3,396 tons of gold, and almost

131 -- 1/3 of that is held in frankfurt. but almost half of germany's goal design in new york. now, the bank is said to have worked up a plan to move more of its gold reserves onto german soil. that plan includes withdrawing all of its gold from france and substantially reducing the amount in new york. the bank is scheduled to officially present its plans tomorrow. >> coming up, jack frost takes a rare holiday in southern europe. >> first, let's take a look at some other stories making the news. >> more fighting has erupted in syria. the opposition says the government has conducted more air strikes on rebel positions in the capital, damascus. there are also reports of dozens being killed and many more injured at a blast at colombo university in the north of the country. >> between carrying army construct as derailed in egypt

-- a train carrying army constructs has derailed in egypt. this is the latest in a string of transport disasters in egypt. the railways in particular have a very poor safety record. >> protestant demonstrators in northern ireland have targeted homes and a church in the catholic area of belfast. the unrest comes amid protests over the council's decision to stop flying the british flag from city hall every day. >> and sub-freezing conditions have been gripping europe. germany certainly is facing a full week of snow or crusty country, but his nudelman north of the continent feeling the freeze. of them of millions of bundling up to face the chill -- millions are bundling up -- >> millions are bundling up to face the chill.

>> we are doing this for our schools so it can be clean and nice. >> the heavy snow brought the tram system to a halt. in any big city, this would bring about a traffic collapse in america and europe regardless when this much snow falls. the snow blankets slovenia as well. some motorists were forced to turn around as roadways became blocked by broken-down trucks. and parts of spain, like here in northwest of madrid, were turned into a winter wonderland. for many, the snow brings with it extra work. but for others, it is a chance to enjoy the serene winter landscape. >> we will be back in one minute with an in-depth report on the u.s. fascination with guns and

the ongoing lance armstrong saba. >> that's right -- will he or will he not own up to doping in that oprah winfrey interview? we will talk about that when we return.

>> welcome back. in the u.s., barack obama says he will present a plan this week for cutting gun violence and month after the newtown massacre. >> it is thought the plan might include a ban on assault weapons, and there could be tighter controls on high- capacity ammunition clips as well as tougher background checks. >> what of the measure, one thing is for sure -- they will be controversial. here's a look at the latest data on guns in the u.s. and how they compare with europe. >> despite recurring shooting rampages, most recently in newtown, connecticut, before that in aurora, colorado, many

americans still reject gun control. they say the right to bear arms is guaranteed by the u.s. constitution. the un estimates america has 88 guns for every 100 residents. guns are involved in about 30 murders per million residents. the contrast with europe is dramatic. britain has just 6.2 tons per hundred and less than one gun murder per million. germany has about 30 firearms per 100 residents. france even more, but relatively few gun murders. in germany, the high number of guns is explained by the popularity of sports shooting clubs, and france has many hunters, but europe has much tighter laws regulating what kinds of guns are available and who may purchase them. >> gun control could become an even trickier issue, thanks to a new gadget that has the tech world buzzing. >> 3-d printers are being hailed

as the next big thing after the internet, bringing manufacturing to the masses and meeting you just have to download a file to make almost any kind of product. >> yes, but what if that kind of product includes guns? next up, we need a man who wants to use digital download to make his own assault weapons. >> science fiction has become reality. all it takes is some liquid plastic and a state of the art 3 the printer to produce the parts needed to make an assault rifle -- stated the art -- state-of- the-art 3-d printer. the internet provided the templates needed. his idea of a free society is one where everyone can make their own weapons. >> we have seen this shooting. this shooting will probably end with the sandy hook shooting. the shooting will probably end with legislation banning this

type of firearm, right? this file will still be on line. you see what i'm saying? it will still be able to reproduce. if you cannot buy it in store, look how much this project is important. >> the shafts needs time to dry. we will visit again tomorrow when cody will show us how to shoot with it, but for now, it is off to latexes gun show -- a texas gun show. gun sales spike in the wake of mass shootings. people want to show what they have and stock up on the latest gear. organizers did not allow us to film inside. >> evil does not flow out of the barrel of a gun. it flows out of the blackness of the human heart. it takes will, evil intention and knowledge to commit a crime like this. >> this small town in texas has

a population of just a few hundred. freshly hunted meat is cooking on the barbecue. people take pride in providing for themselves. few here have any faith in the central government in washington. they like to do things their own way. those that do favor stricter control have it tough here. >> to take my gun away from me, you have to get my cold, dead fingers off the trigger first. i will be shooting as long as i'm pulling the trigger. >> the sign above the bar says it all -- guns are as big a part of life here as beer. her rhetoric as a farmer -- she grew up with guns and is keen to show us her most prized possession. >> my dad gave me that done, and he taught me how to shoot it. i was 12 years old. >> do not mess with this one. i can tell you that. >> and i know how should it, too.

>> meanwhile, cody has got everything ready. >> this is all we need. >> it takes just 10 minutes to assemble the rifle. he bought every part online, except for the receiver, which has no serial number. the process is totally illegal, and he is unconcerned that it could make life easy for criminals. >> will it be of use? of course. right? how can i say this right will never be of use? of course it will be abused, but to be serious about the right means to protect it regardless. >> these are some of the people who have to deal with the results of that abuse. john train's police officers to respond to school shootings. the state is gearing up for the fight. officers need to act swiftly and decisively. >> i got one down, one male -- white male.

but a victim, a gunshot wound, extremities. tourniquet has been applied. >> it is a difficult situation, but even these officers respect the right. >> i respect the law and people's ability to protect themselves. there needs to be regulation as to who has it and how easy it is to get, but a total ban -- i do not think that is realistic, and i do not think that is a remedy to any of the problems we have seen. >> it is the moment truth -- could he takes aim and fired more than 20 rounds. the homemade rifle seems ok at first glance. all the bullets in their target. as far as he is concerned, his idea works. the receiver has not last long, but that is not putting cody off -- the receiver has not lasted long. >> rights are not about if it is socially better. are more people say or are less people say? i'm going to say that if you could prove to me that it was

more dangerous socially that we have firearms, i would say it is important to protect that right anyway. >> he is convinced his downloadable rifles will help preserve that right. >> we saw some of the people there who barack obama will be up against. how do you rate his chances of pushing through real reform of america's gun laws? >> it does not look like he has a majority of votes in congress for actually banning a certain weapon tight, these assault weapons we have been hearing about so much. a slight majority of americans are in favor of banning them, but in congress, too many lawmakers are afraid it -- afraid of the cloud of the nra -- afraid of the clout of the nra. other measures like increased background checks or banning magazines have strong backing with the american public. >> many european scratch their

heads at the mention of american gun laws. how do you explain the fascination america seems to have with guns? >> there's a lot of aspects to it. obviously, there is a culture of violence in the united states. there's a strong military culture in the united states. having said that, the argument you hear most often and that most people often believe, at least those who have guns, is that guns are a symbol of freedom. those are the people -- and believe me, there are lots of them -- who say that any attempt on the government to manage their lives is an assault on freedom. usually people who think that do not really question the argument, although it is obviously not a sound argument. the simplest way -- the simplest way of explaining this is that the freedom of some to possess these military weapons really restricts the freedom of many. just ask those parents who are scared to send their kids to

school now. >> thanks very much for joining us in washington. >> lance armstrong is reported to have admitted for the first time to using performance- enhancing drugs during his cycling career. >> for years, he denied allegations that he had due to his way to 7 tour de france victories, but last year, he was stripped of all those titles. he has recorded a 2.5-hour long interview with oprah winfrey on the subject. she says that he was forthcoming about the subject, but did not come clean in the manner she had expected. >> for more, we are now joined in the studio by our sports correspondent. i think it is fair to say that lance armstrong never does anything without a game plan. what could it be this time? >> you are right. this is certainly being carefully stage managed. he's been very clever perhaps in waiting until some of the impact had receded in public

memory before starting out on his well trodden and it must be said lucrative path to redemption. if he does confess, he opens himself up to a number of lawsuits, but if he makes himself marketable again, detoxifies his image in this way, he can go on and publish a book that will make more money than any of this clean cyclist did during that era, it is a rather perverse state of affairs. >> if he does now confess, could there be more damage in store for the cycling community at large? >> certainly. it seems armstrong and the sport's governing body had a very cozy relationship when he was cheating. he made donations. his sponsors made donations. if he now takes down anyone with any knowledge of his doping, the fallout and the credibility will be left in tatters. >> thanks very much for talking to us.

that is all from us for the moment. >> stay with us here on dw. of course, you can get more news any time of day on our website, dw.de. >> please stay with us. captioned by the national captioning institute --www.ncicap.org--